ARA: Would you recommend ‘beer of the month’ clubs?

Do you know anything about beer of the month club? If so, would you recommend it? I am thinking of doing it for my boyfriend’s birthday … you can also combine wine and cigars with it. It sounds perfect for him because he loves all 3. I just dont know what its all about. I am gonna call tomorrow.

17 Responses

I was planning on getting a Beer of the Month club for my significant other this Christmas but after much research decided it wasn’t worth the money. I was thinking about this one http://www.microbeerclub.com/, but there seems to be many you can choose from. Most clubs don’t tell you the exact beer (usually give examples) you’d be getting… so if the person has tried hundreds of various craft beers and such in their lifetime, the chances of them already having had it is pretty big. I ended up getting a NYC Beer Tour gift certificate which tours 3-4 different breweries. Same amount of money and at least there’s an experience with it. Just my two cents. Good luck.

There’s some distributors in the area that sell a decent selection of microbrews (Glenville Beverage, Oliver’s(Brew Crew), EBI in Saratoga among others; plus there’s a really nice one in Poughkeepsie called Halftime). Get him a gift certificate to one of those places and he can pick out whatever he wants. Plus that way you can see what he gets/likes for styles and/or brand and know for future reference!

I posted an ARA a couple of years ago asking something similiar and taking readers advice, we went ahead and purchased 3 months (maybe 3 beers a month) for our 22 year old son. He continued the subscription and has turned into quite a beer expert. He has over 300 different brands (I think) and has really learned a lot and it’s a fun hobby for him. He’s refinishing his basement and has nice shelves built for displaying them. I recommend a similiar subscription as we did – start off small. Going forward you can always extend or buy him a couple of months. It’s fun for the recipient.

I bought my husband a 6-month version of the beer of the month club from amazingclubs.com for Christmas 2 years ago. He loved it! It was a little pricey, but he got to try beers he may never have had the chance to without the club. Plus, it’s like the gift that keeps on giving, as he was always excited to receive his next shipment. I’d recommend it.

We got my brother a membership for christimas a few years back… I think it was amazingclubs.com as well. He loved it! We did the seasonal package where he got 4 shipments during the year at the start of each season and the beers were themed to the season. It’s a fun gift and he liked getting it throughout the year. He said it also made him try types he may not have tried otherwise.

Beer of the month sounds like a great idea! Another idea, would be to head down to Oliver’s (The Brew Crew) on Colvin Avenue in Albany, tell them what kind of beer he likes and create a custom gift set. Plus they also have nicely packaged sets of beers by some breweries. Good luck!

I got a 6 month one as a gift a few years ago. Not sure which club it was. It wasn’t bad, there were a few beers I had never seen before, but I got a lot of micros that can be found at most grocery stores these days (Lagunitas, Abita, Great Lakes, etc). It was fun getting beer delivered by mail, but it definitely cost more than buying the same beer yourself at the store.

Beer of the month clubs tend to be very expensive. Keep the money local and hit up one of our fine beverage centers in the Capital District: Oliver’ and Westmere Beverage Brew Crew; Hoosick beverage in Troy; Union Beverge in Schenectady or the world’s biggest beer store – Half Time – in Poughkeepsie (a 90 minute drive, but worth it).

Beer shouldn’t just be a guy thing. Going to the store together and picking out something you both can enjoy is an educational and bonding experience. Fizzy yellow lager like Bud miller and Coors only accounts for 1% of all the styles of beer in the world. Try the other 99%.

Thanks for all the tips everyone. I ended up getting him the beer of the month but did it for 6 months and having it delivered to him every other month since its a 12 pack bottles… He does like beer and i figured he would enjoy it. I am paying monthly too so its 36 a month and shipping is free. If he likes it for the 6 months then I will continue it for him. I like how they have wine and coffee memberships too. Its a good site. http://www.greatclubs.com. His birthday is in Feb so the first shipment will be after that. :)

I haven’t been there in a while, but Mahar’s on Madison Ave in Albany is an interesting place. They have a beer tour, with tap and cask beers from all over the world and they’re always getting new ones. They keep track of all the beers you drink and how many via computer and each time you go in you can print out the beers they have on tap that you’ve never tried. You can also buy bottled beers to take home. The only downside is that it sometimes smells weird in there. And the food is questionable. Also the bartender isn’t always friendly, especially if he doesn’t know you or you don’t know the routine. (don’t dare order a coors light or any such equivalent) And it’s kind of a small joint. And they don’t have any liquor. Other than that, it’s cool! Quirky but lots of character.

I just bought a gift for my buddy’s birthday last month from http://www.greatclubs.com and he just raves about the quality of the microbrews. He says they are all fresh and from real small breweries. He gets 4 types a month. Financially it works for me, cause I bought him 6 months, and greatclubs.com bills monthly, whereas other clubs dont.